Investor confidence trends lower one year after Ukraine invasion
Investor confidence has yet to recover almost one year after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
According to new data from the Hargreaves Lansdown Investor Confidence Index, confidence in the UK economy is still below the level it was at in February 2022.
However, Hargreaves Lansdown noted that there has been a “marked improvement since last month”, as the economy started to recover from the disastrous Liz Truss premiership.
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Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said that the economic repercussions of the Russian invasion of Ukraine have reverberated around with works, sending the price of food, raw materials and energy bills soaring. This has led to rising inflation, which has forced central banks to hike interest rates, making the cost of borrowing even higher.
“Fears that a long deep recession could be sparked by the crisis have receded, with confidence in UK economic growth jumping 43 per cent in February compared to January,” Streeter said.
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“Compared to September, when the Trussenomics mini-budget was unleashed prompting market mayhem, confidence in the UK economy has more than doubled. Financial stability has been restored and given that we appear to be past the peak of inflation, there is growing hope that better times are around the corner.
“However, optimism in the UK economy is still around a third lower than it was immediately before Russia invaded Ukraine. Many appear to believe the ripple effect of the war is still holding back Britain’s recovery.”
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